Existentialism and Autism

  • Monday 28th March 2022

 

The existential perspective can be helpful in understanding some of the challenges autistic people experience.  ImageFor example, many autistic and neurodivergent people can find making choices difficult and overwhelming. In everyday life we are often faced with hundreds of options, what washing machine should I buy, when is the best time to call someone, where should I go on holiday? Not only are there lots of different options, it is likely that there isn’t a straight forward choice, there are pros and cons on both sides. Non-autistic people will often make choices by taking a risk and going for the one that looks like” it will be the best, or maybe the one that others have done. Some autistic people can find that really hard, they can stuck overwhelmed by all the choice, how is it possible to just choose without clear evidence?!

 

 

These situations could actually be seen in terms of the existential idea of freedom”. Existentialists believe that humans are not pre-determined, we are born and we have the freedom to choose what we do, who we become. Even